If you were only
casually watching LSU beat Kentucky on Tuesday at the Pete Maravich Assembly
Center, it could've easily slipped under your radar. But Jarell Martin
certainly noticed.

This playing defense stuff?
Not all that bad.

Martin had a
respectable offensive night with 9 points in the Tigers' 87-82 victory, though
he missed two late free throws that could've made the finish a little smoother.
The 6-foot-9, 240-pound freshman also had an assist on a press-break, feeding
Andre Stringer for one of his 3 3-pointers.

The biggest
contributions from Martin came on defense, though, and that's something sort of
new for the talented forward.

In 31 minutes, Martin
snared 3 defensive rebounds, blocked 3 shots and stole the ball twice. On a
night when the LSU defense registered 11 blocks and 11 steals, it's not a
stretch to say Martin was the defensive MVP.

"I feel like I've come
a long way - getting some stops, some blocks, some steals just being more
aggressive and being physical," he said. "With my length and versatility, I can
play out on the wing and defend and use quickness or I can go down low and use
physicality against big guys."

Added
LSU coach Johnny Jones, who put the Tigers in a 2-3 zone with Martin and Jordan
Mickey flanking Johnny O'Bryant, "I thought Jarell did an excellent job of containing and rebounding
and contesting shots, something that we needed against a very good scoring
Kentucky basketball team.

"We're hopeful (he is) able
to grow from that. At the same time, when your teammates are playing well
behind you, it allows for you to defend a certain way because you have help back
there behind you, and I thought our guys did a great job of helping and
rotating and helping each other and Jarell was certainly a part of that."

UK's uber-talented
forward Julius Randle struggled through a miserable night, hitting only 3-of-11
field goals on the way to a season-low 6 points. Of his eight misses, three
were blocked, and he went to the foul stripe just once.

Martin was called for
three fouls, but didn't get his third until the 12:03 mark of the second half.
Mickey was whistled for only one infraction.

And it wasn't only
Randle who scuffled. Wildcats' 7-footer Willie Cauley-Stein was 1-of-5 from the
floor and scored only 3 points in 17 minutes. UK did get a boost off the bench
from Dakari Johnson (15 points and 6 rebounds) and Alex Poythress (10-7), but
an out-of-sync Randle was too damaging a ripple effect to overcome.

Arkansas (13-7, 2-5 SEC)
has won only three of 30 road or neutral-site games under third-year coach Mike
Anderson and is 2-5 away from Bud Walton Arena this season -- 0-3 in conference
games.

That doesn't catch the
Tigers' attention as much as what the Hogs did and almost did two weeks ago.

In back-to-back home
games, Arkansas lost to then No. 10-ranked Florida in overtime, 84-82, and then
edged No. 13 Kentucky 87-85 in OT. Likewise, the Razorbacks went toe-to-toe
with Missouri in Fayetteville on Tuesday in a 75-71 loss.

The other two losses
were also close games and on the road: 66-61 in overtime at Georgia and 81-74
at Tennessee, which clubbed LSU 68-50 on Jan. 7.

"I think if you look at
their games against Tennessee and maybe at Georgia, an overtime basketball
game, they led and were very competitive in both of those games and had their
chances," Jones said.

"They're a team that is very capable on the road and just
some things have happened. They're certainly one of those teams that are looking
for the next opportunity, so you have to make sure that you try to guard
against that."

It's a little simpler
for Anthony Hickey, the Hopkinsville, Ky., native who just chalked up his first
win against Big Blue.

"They beat Kentucky and
that gets my attention," he said. "That lets you know you can't take them
lightly."

Nothing new on Bridgewater

Florida's hopes for a
deep NCAA Tournament run got a boost this week when freshman Chris Walker was
finally cleared by the NCAA and reinstated for immediate action.

LSU freshman Brian Bridgewater hasn't stepped on the court in a competitive situation since the night he scored 24 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead Scotlandville past Ouachita for the 2013 Class 5A state championship.David Grunfield, NOLA.com | Times-Picayune

LSU's Brian Bridgewater
has been through a similar drawn-out process, but no resolution is in sight for
the 6-foot-6, 230-pound forward who starred at Scotlandville and Episcopal in
Baton Rouge.

"It is what it is for
us," Jones said. "We were hoping we would've heard by now, but nothing has
changed with Bridgewater. He's on scholarship, he's able to work through the
academic center. The only thing he can't do is play or practice."

Former LSU coach Dale
Brown and former Tigers' star Rudy Macklin will team up for a Q&A
presentation from 2-3 p.m. Saturday at Hill Memorial Library prior to the game
against Arkansas.

Brown and Macklin, the
leading rebounder in school history (1,276) and the second-leading scorer
(2,080 points) will be joined by longtime Baton Rouge radio man Jim Engster for
a discussion of the Tigers' past, the 1981 Final Four run and where the program
is headed under former Macklin teammate and Brown assistant coach Johnny Jones.

There is no admission cost,
and a reception will follow. Parking is available at the Mounds Lot.

A pair of big men will
join LSU Coach Johnny Jones on Tuesday at his monthly "Tipoff Luncheon
Presented by Hub International" at the L'Auberge Resort in Baton Rouge.

Former LSU and NBA
player Stanley Roberts will be on hand to discuss his time with the Tigers, and
to also talk about a great story of returning to campus to finish up his
college degree, which he received in December 2012.

Macklin, a native of
Louisville, will also give his thoughts on LSU's win against Kentucky and this
year's team.

The luncheon begins at
11:30 a.m. and the program begins at 12:10 p.m. The buffet cost is $14.95.